


Secret of the Sprite Society

by Aurora_Mandeville



Series: Cedar Ridge Cases [1]
Category: Arden Blake - Fandom
Genre: Arden Blake series, Fairies, Fantasy, Sims 4 Inspired, Sprites, Wizards
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2020-10-24
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:41:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26674564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aurora_Mandeville/pseuds/Aurora_Mandeville
Summary: Arden Blake and her best friends Sim Westover and Terry Landry are going to Cedar Ridge College for their degrees and are thrilled to be roommates! But things start to get really interesting when a pool becomes nearly impossible to fix, a bell that shouldn't be ringing is heard at night, and the owner of a nearby hot spot is getting strange vandalism. The girls decide to investigate and find out there's more going on under their noses than they thought.
Series: Cedar Ridge Cases [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1940920
Kudos: 1





	1. Going to College

Arden Blake walked up to the stone stairs of Cedar Ridge College with a bounce to her step. Her two closest friends, blonde Simone “Sim” Westover and auburn Theodosia “Terry” Landry, joined her at the bottom of the stairway. Arden pushed a strand of dark brown hair behind her ear a couple of times, but soon gave up as the wind was just as relentless in pushing it back into her face.   
She let out a huff before turning blue eyes that sparkled with excitement on her friends. “So, what do you think?”   
Terry gave a little queal. “I can’t wait to get started!”   
Sim laughed. “I just can’t believe we ended up being roommates!”   
“I know, right?” exclaimed Arden. “Come on, let’s go find our room!” The three dashed up the stairs past other students and went to the hall where the rooms were to be found. The three kept checking a piece of paper they had each received with a key against the numbers of the dorm rooms until they found the match. Arden pulled out her key and unlocked the door to room number 513. The three walked in, Arden closing and locking the door behind them.  
Terry gasped. “This room is so quaint!” The walls were covered in a pretty, green and white, Victorian wallpaper. A bed was pushed up against each wall, with a wardrobe at the end of each. Next to the top of each bed stood a bedside table with drawers and a clock on top of each. In the middle of the room, three corner desks were pushed up against each other, leaving no gaps. There was also a bookcase on either side of the door. And tucked away between one bed and a bookcase was the door to the bathroom.   
“This is actually bigger than I thought it would be,” said Sim with a hint of awe in her voice.   
“And so nicely put together!” said Terry. “And here I was loathing to live in an ugly room.” She tutted. “Shouldn't wonder that John was teasing me, and I fell for it!”   
“But I thought John wasn't teasing you?” said Sim slowly.   
“Didn't he go to a different college?” said Arden. “Maybe there are colleges with ugly rooms, and we picked one of the better ones.”  
Terry’s lip went up a bit in a slight grimace. “Yeah, you're right.” She gave a shake of her auburn head. “Anyway, who wants which bed? I'm fine with any one.”   
“Hmm,” said Arden as she glanced at each one. Only two had windows, but she went towards one that looked out towards a modern building. “Say, isn't that Sanford Institute over there?”  
Terry walked towards her with a bounce in her step and a bob of her head. “Why, I believe so.” She pulled out a map of the campus grounds. “It looks like it is, according to this.” She folded up the map and glanced excitedly at her friends. “You heard about the legend of these two schools, right?”  
Sim tilted her head, thinking a bit. “Are you talking about the one that every year, a student from Sanford and a student from Cedar Ridge will fall in love, while another two will hate each other till their dying breath?”   
Terry bobbed her head. “Yes, oh yes, that one! It sends shivers up my spine every time! And we shall be here to see four years!”  
Sim scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Yeah, four years of useless drama.”   
“Oh come on, what is college if it's not an extension of high school?”   
Arden laughed. “That is such a good point though. Certainly seems like it.”   
Sim heaved an exaggerated sigh. “I’ve had enough of high school drama. It's so dumb.”   
Arden chuckled. “It certainly makes life interesting, that's for sure.”   
Sim scoffed. “I can think of a hundred different ways that can make life more interesting than that.”  
Terry shrugged. “To each their own.”  
“So true,” said Arden at the same time with a nod of her head. She glanced out the window. “So, back on topic, who wants this bed?”   
Terry giggled. “I think you do.”   
Arden turned back to her and waved her hand. “Oh come on Terry, it’s a great view! But I don’t want to look out of it all the time.”   
Terry laughed. “Oh, alright, but I think you’re going to get stuck with it anyways. Since you two are taking so long, I decided to make a decision.” She went and plopped her backpack on the bed nearest the bathroom.   
Sim crossed her arms. “You didn’t care which one you got, huh?”   
Terry smirked and shrugged. “Hey, I gave you a chance to choose this one, but you were taking too long.”   
Sim rolled her eyes and sighed before glancing at Arden. “So which bed do you want?”   
Arden sighed before shaking her head and chuckling softly. She placed her backpack on the bed looking out at Sanford. “I guess I will take this one.”   
“Thank you,” said Sim as she went to place her backpack on the third bed.   
“So, what do we do now until our luggage gets up here?” asked Terry. She glanced at the clock. “And we’ve still got an hour until orientation.”   
Arden sat on her bed and opened up her backpack. She began pulling out a few articles while she shrugged. “Start unpacking your backpack, I guess. Maybe even try to memorize the map of the campus. I wouldn’t want to get lost.”   
Sim nodded as she began unpacking her backpack. The first two things out were a snow globe and her bathing suit. She placed the snow globe on the bedside table next to the clock and her bathing suit went into the drawer. “Yeah, I wouldn’t want to get lost either. But I would like to pass by the swimming pool on the way.”  
Terry scoffed. “Go figure.” Sim shot her a grin.   
Arden chuckled. “I’m sure we can work out something. I mean, we don’t have to unpack our luggage when it gets here, we have all week for that! We just had to be for when the porter showed up.”   
“Don’t think it’s an odd tradition?” asked Sim. “You know, having a porter take up your bags to your room.”   
“I think it’s sweet,” said Terry. “And we didn’t have to lug everything up here.”   
Arden nodded, shooting a glance at Terry. “Especially with how much you brought.” Sim chuckled.   
Terry waved her hand. “Oh goodness, I have to bring a whole lot, knowing how you two are.”   
Sim burst out laughing. “She’s got us there, Arden.”   
Arden chuckled. “Alright, alright, truce! But it is nice not to have to bring up everything, that’s for sure.”   
“Oh, definitely,” said Terry, opening up the pamphlet again. “And if I heard the desk clerk right, it’s a tradition from the olden days of Cedar Ridge, back when it was an all girls’ school.”   
“An interesting tradition to keep,” said Sim.   
“But it’s a nice one, and probably to just have something to connect it to its history,” said Arden.   
“They also have an old bell tower with a bell in the courtyard. We can go take a look at that while we pass the pool on our way to orientation.”   
Sim grinned. “That sounds like a plan.” A knock was heard at their door. Sim and Terry dashed to open it. A man in his early twenties stood there looking quite dashing in an old fashioned porter suit.   
He tipped his hat and gave them a brilliant smile. “Luggage for Arden Blake, Theodosia Landry, and Simone Westover.”  
“You’ve come to the right place!” exclaimed Terry, throwing the door open. “And such excellent service!”  
The porter grinned and he pushed in the cart with their luggage. “Thank you, we do our best.”   
“Do you just work here, or do you also go to school?” asked Terry.   
He shrugged as he began unloading. “I just work here.” Sim and Arden jumped in to help get their luggage off.  
“What else do you do besides just carting luggage?” asked Terry.   
“I work as a groundskeeper the rest of the time,” he said with a soft chuckle. “Today is just one of the days where I’m not.”   
“Oh, Ok . . . do you have a degree?”   
“Um, Terry, not to be rude or anything, but the guy’s got a job to do,” said Sim.   
The porter laughed. “Oh, it’s fine! She’s fine! You’re my last stop anyways, I’ve got some free time after this . . . before the last minute panic rushers barge in, that is.”   
Sim scoffed. “I will never understand some people. If you know you need to be somewhere by a certain time, it would be best to give yourself an extra five minutes to get there so you’re not rushing around.”   
The porter scoffed. “No kidding. But you just can’t always predict what will happen.”   
“Speaking of getting somewhere on time,” said Arden, “do you know how long it will take for us to get to orientation if we pass the bell tower and the pool?”   
The porter thought for a moment. “Well, if you're just pausing for a quick moment to look at each of them . . . and if you want to give yourself five minutes just in case . . . about twenty minutes, give or take.”   
Arden nodded thoughtfully, glancing at the clock. “Which gives us about twenty minutes from now to unpack a few things before heading out.”   
“Or you could leave now and give yourself forty minutes to enjoy the sights and still get there with plenty of time,” he suggested.   
Terry wrinkled her nose. “Mmm, well, that is a good idea, but I don’t want to leave that early.”   
“How about we leave in ten minutes then?” suggested Arden.   
Terry grinned. “Sounds fine by me.” She turned to the porter. “And thank you so much, Mister, um . . .”   
The porter held out his hand. “I’m Tom Scott, and it is my job.”   
Terry shook his hand. “Well, I still want to thank you for doing a wonderful job. See you around, perhaps?”   
“We’ll see. It was nice to meet you three, but I do have other jobs to attend to, so good day.” He tipped his hat.   
“Good day, and thanks!” said Arden with a wave.   
“Bye!” said Sim. Tom pulled the cart out of the room and walked down the hall, Sim closing the door behind him. She went to her bed and glanced at the clock. “Alright, ten minutes, let’s see how much we can get unpacked.”   
Arden grinned. “You’re on.” The three unpacked as much as they could in such a short amount of time, but as soon as that time was up, they were grabbing their purses, making sure they each had their key, just in case, and were locking the door before taking off.   
They got to the bell tower firs, as noted in the pamphlet, and gazed upon it with fascination. It was exactly the same as when it was built back in the late 1800’s. The school kept it in regular upkeep since then, even adding two unicorn statues to flank it, the school’s mascot and emblem. Terry read that the rope to the bell had frayed sometime in the early 1900s and that a legend stated that the spirit of a young woman would ring it at odd times. Another legend thought it was sprites looking out for the welfare of the school, the bell having rung a few times to wake people before disaster struck. The three took a quick walk around the tower. It was made of whitewashed wood with a single door. Only one person, or possibly two small people, could fit within the tower. But they each took a turn and saw the frayed rope hanging far over their heads. Then it was on to see the pool.   
“What?” exclaimed Sim. Upon reaching the pool, the three came upon locked doors and a sign reading “Closed Until Further Notice - Maintenance”. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”   
Arden bit her lip. This pool was the main reason that convinced Sim to join her and Terry at Cedar Ridge. Now what were they going to do?   
“You know, guess we’ll be seeing Tom again soon,” said Terry. “He probably knows what’s going on with the pool and how much longer it’s going to take to get it back up and running again.”   
Sim sighed. “I guess so. I just hope it’s not going to be long. I really wanted to get some swimming in before school started.”   
Arden patted her back. “Well, maybe we can find another pool for you to use. There’s got to be a public pool around in town, or something. We can check it out after orientation. We do have the rest of the week to explore.”   
Sim shrugged. “I guess that would have to do. Though I wonder why Tom didn’t say anything about it.”   
“Well we did say we were going to take a look at it, not go into it,” pointed out Terry, “he could have assumed that we already knew.”   
“Yeah, I guess so,” muttered Sim. “Well, guess we’ll be really early to orientation, at least.”   
“We can find good seats, then,” said Arden. “Come on!” The three dashed to the auditorium. People were already filing in, but most were standing and chatting away. A loud squeal to their right caught their attention.   
“Arden, Sim, Terry!” The three were nearly rammed over by a girl their age, her dark hair was braided with various beads to match her colorful dress.   
“Ethel!” chorused the three. They hugged their friend. Ethel Anderson grew up with Sim and the two met Arden and Terry in middle-school. They formed a circle and did a quick spin.   
“Isn’t this exciting?” asked Ethel, continuing to bounce after they stopped spinning. “You should take a look at some of the girls going into the acting field. Why, I saw one who looked like she was Audrey Hepburn!”   
Terry’s mouth dropped. “You’re kidding? Where?”   
Ethel pointed to a girl sitting in the front. Her brown hair was pulled up into a perfect bun, not a hair out of place, and had on a lovely green floral tea party dress. “Her,” she whispered in awe.   
“Wowee, she not only looks like Audrey Hepburn, she also looks like she stepped right out of an old movie!” whispered Terry. “And boy, do we have some fine boys coming here too.” Sim and Ethel glanced at each other and rolled their eyes before chuckling.   
“I want to know how she manages to get her hair all perfect like that,” mumbled Arden, playing with her waves.   
Ethel scoffed. “A lot of time, patience, and hair spray.” She flipped a braid over her shoulder. “And she probably has pretty straight hair too, a lot easier to work with than curls some days.”   
Arden gave her a tight smile. “Right.”   
Terry scoffed. “Hair in general can be such a pain to work with . . . but it can also be so much fun.” She grinned. “Like your braids. They’re awesome!”   
Ethel beamed. “Thanks!”   
“But there only seems to be her and a couple of other people who dress like that,” pointed out Sim. “Are they the only ones going in for acting, or are they just the only ones going for acting who decided to dress up?”   
Ethel shrugged. “Can’t tell you, don’t know who’s going into acting. All I can say is, my roommates aren’t.”   
“Oh! Which room are you in? The six of us should hang out!” said Terry.   
“Nine of us, once we find Jane,” said Sim, referring to another friend who had also applied to Cedar Ridge. She quickly explained the pool situation and what their plans were for the rest of the week, so far.   
“That actually sounds great! Come on, I’ll introduce you to my roommates. Maybe we’ll find Jane along the way.” Ethel led them to where two other girls were standing and introduced them to Mary Todd, who was going in for a degree in literature, and Linda Lewis, who was aiming for music. The six chatted gaily, all while looking for the last friend from home. They finally found her with her roommates, Millie Pratt and Greta Larsen. And just in time to make a wild dash for seats as the orientation was being called together to begin. When everyone was finally seated and the chatting hushed, the president of the college began. Her dark curly hair was pulled up into a smart bun and she was wearing a fine green suit.   
“Welcome one and all to Cedar Ridge College!” A cheer went up and died down when the president held up her hands. “And we’re all glad to see you all here! If you don’t know me already, I am the president of Cedar Ridge, Dr. Tilda Anklon, but everyone just calls me Doc Tillie. I’m sure you all have a lot of exploring to do, so let’s get this orientation underway! Oh, real quick, before I forget, the pool was closed down due to some rusty pipes. We hope that it will be back up and running in time for the swim team to begin practicing. You may sign up if you wish, we will let you know if anything changes. Now, without further ado, this darn orientation.” A soft chuckle came in reply. But she got into it, giving all the rules, traditions, and opportunities to be found at Cedar Ridge. She ended it with, “And so, I say again, welcome to Cedar Ridge, where you take the first steps in making your dreams come true!” A standing ovation erupted at her words. Arden glanced at her friends. They all beamed at her. They couldn’t wait for theirs to come true, and it looked like they picked the right place to get started.


	2. The Legend of the Bell Tower

Arden stretched and yawned. She sat up in her bed and peeked out her window. The sun was rising on the other side of the building, but Arden could see the campus bathed in warm pinks and oranges. She smiled and took in a deep breath. The window wasn't open, but she could almost smell the cool morning air. She giggled softly. She was so glad to be alive, to be able to experience this! And with her best friends, no less.   
She glanced at the still sleeping forms of Sim and Terry. Terry rolled over and snuggled under her blankets. Arden smiled as she pulled back her covers and tested the floor with her foot. It was cool to the touch, but not too cold, definitely not freezing. She placed both of her feet firmly on the floor, stood up, and stretched. She went to her dresser, selected her outfit, and changed. Turning back to her companions, she debated waking them up so they could eat breakfast early or let them sleep in and they eat later.   
It didn’t matter, to be honest, they were only planning on unpacking and doing some more exploring of the area. While the cafeteria did close at ten for breakfast, there were vendors all over the campus that would allow the girls to get something should they decide to sleep in until ten. Arden glanced at the clock. It was only seven o’clock. She glanced at the window again. Maybe a quick run would work for now and she would wake her friends upon her return, if they weren’t already awake at that time. She gave a little nod. Yes, that will work. Give them some more time to sleep and she could shake some of that restlessness out of her veins. She just wanted to move, and move she did. Grabbing her cell, the room key, the campus map, and her I.D., she left the room. She took a quick moment to check the map before taking off through the campus.   
She noticed rather quickly that there weren’t many students milling around the campus grounds. It seemed that if anyone else was up, they were either exploring the nearby town of Morrisville or still cozy under their blankets, like Sim and Terry. She pursed her lips, maybe she should be doing that too, what with how crazy things were sure to get once classes started. Her lips curled into a smile as another thought flashed through her mind. She had the rest of the week to do that, today might be the only day for a peaceful, quiet walk around the campus. Taking a deep breath of the fresh air, she continued on.   
She took in the sights and smells of the early morning breeze flowing through the last of the flowers and old bricks. The birds were chirping in the treetops as a soft breeze ruffled the branches and Arden’s hair. The campus was in pretty good shape for being as old as it was. She pulled out the map again, there was a bit of info on it, a piece of which was when it was built, back in the 1800s. Way over a hundred years old now, and still standing. She smiled as she walked through the hall on her way to the bell tower, it was lovely. An idea struck her, maybe she could talk to Tom about the pool, if she saw him on her walk. It really was a bummer that it was closed, even though Sim in particular was looking forward to it, Arden thought a nice swim before the fall weather set in would be nice.   
“Are you sure you heard it?” The question, asked by a girl standing near the bell, came out of the blue like a thunderclap. Arden paused and blinked. She looked over at the group of girls hovering near the bell tower, glancing at the bell tower and each other in fear.   
One of the other girls nodded, her eyes wide. “Yes! I heard it as clearly as I hear you now! That bell rang last night, at midnight!”   
The other girls gasped. One girl scoffed, however. “Oh, Sarah, either it was your imagination or there’s a logical explanation for it.”   
Sarah placed her hands on her hips, her expression going from fear to anger in an instant. “Does there always have to be a logical explanation with you, Nadine?”   
Nadine scoffed. “Just like it’s always a supernatural reason with you?”   
Sarah threw up her hands. “Come on, Nadine! Those guys just found out the mermaids existed over the summer! Even the mermaids themselves say that, though they haven’t met every supernatural being out there, that they could exist!”   
“That doesn’t necessarily mean this was the work of a supernatural being,” pointed out Nadine, starting to get a little frustrated.   
“Then what could it mean, then?” asked Sarah a little harshly.   
A soft smirk began to play on Nadine’s lips. “A mystery, and it’s begging to be solved. Want to solve it?”   
“Ugh, no thank you,” said Sarah with a groan as she flicked her wrist dismissively. “I don’t want to hear anymore about mysteries.”   
“Then I don’t want to hear any more about midnight bells or the supernatural,” returned Nadine with a sly smirk, “because both of those are technically mysteries.”   
Sarah opened her mouth to speak, paused, and her eyes widened. Another girl rubbed her chin. “You know Nadine, you’re right.”   
“Well of course I am,” said Nadine. “But there is one mystery I would like to solve.” She turned to Sarah. “Whatever were you doing out here at midnight? Was it that you were hoping a vampire would come and sweep you off your feet?”   
Sarah's face turned beet red. Arden ducked around the corner so they wouldn't see or hear her snickering. But she was close enough to hear Sarah humph and say, “That is the most absurd thing I have ever heard! Come on, consider this matter closed. But I warn you, Nadine, if more people hear the bell and no one can explain it, you better believe the supernatural is behind it.”  
Arden peeked around the corner. Nadine scoffed. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”   
“Of course you will,” mumbled Sarah. The group walked away. Arden waited a moment before walking towards the bell tower. She walked around it a couple times, sizing it up, before walking into it. She glanced up, the rope still hung several feet above her, the ends frayed, a testament to its old age. She touched the wall. The stones were cool and a bit moist, like it had been gently kissed by the morning dew, but otherwise, it looked exactly as she and her friends had examined it the day before. Besides, even if someone did ring the bell, why would they ring it?   
What began as a murmur of voices grew louder, prompting Arden to come out of the bell tower. It was Tom Scott walking towards the tower, flanked by two women. The first one Arden recognized as the woman who looked similar to Audrey Hepburn, the one whom they had admired at the orientation. The other woman was unknown to Arden, but she looked young enough to be a student at the college. Then again, so was Tom. She also didn’t look too happy that Tom was chatting with the other woman, who looked particularly lovely in a pale pink, vintage-looking suit and matching wedges. The three paused when they saw Arden.   
Tom smiled as a look of relief mingled with recognition passed over his face. “Well hello there! Now, which one were you? Sim, Terry or Arden?”   
Arden blinked in surprise. “You remember our names?”   
“Well of course, I didn’t exactly bring the luggage around to everyone in the college, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to remember!”   
The lovely woman in pink laughed. “He told me the same thing he asked me which one I was! Here, I can make this easier for all of us.” She held out her hand. “Hello, I’m Peggy Lane.”   
Arden shook her hand, smiling. “Nice to meet you, Peggy, I’m Arden Blake.”   
“Ah,” said Tom, “so which one is Terry and which one is Sim?”   
“Terry was the one asking all the questions,” said Arden with a chuckle.  
“Gotcha,” said Tom with a chuckle, “which means the tall blonde was Sim, right?”   
Arden gave a quick bob of her head. “That’s right.”   
“So glad you remember their names, Tom,” said the other woman, a hint of ice to her voice.   
“Oh, um, Arden, this is Trudy Everett, but everyone calls her Toots.”   
Trudy gave Arden a quick nod and a tight smile. “Pleasure to meet you, Miss Blake.”   
“A pleasure to meet you too, Toots,” said Arden. “I hope I wasn’t interrupting anything.”   
“Oh, I was just showing Peggy here the bell tower. If you couldn’t tell, she has an interest in all things vintage.”   
“Yes, I’m afraid I give that away far too easily,” said Peggy with a chuckle.   
“And she makes all her clothes herself!” announced Tom.   
“Yes, a very accomplished young lady,” said Trudy a little harshly.   
Arden glanced at Peggy and gasped. “You do? Why, that’s amazing!”   
“Well, thank you. But this suit wasn’t made by me, my grandma gave it to me.”   
“Well it certainly looks lovely on you.”   
“Thank you!”   
“Weren’t you going to tell her about the legend of the bell tower before getting back to work, Tom?” asked Trudy.   
“Oh, yes, please do tell! I do enjoy a good ghost story.”   
“Eh, I don’t know if this is any good, per say, but, here goes. There are actually two legends about the bell tower. The first one is about the spirit of a woman who rang the bell during a fire in the 1930s, trying to wake everyone up. Thanks to her, everyone else did get out alright. But she, unfortunately, didn’t. So she wanders the halls, making sure the school is safe. She will ring the bell should anything be wrong. The second legend, which is becoming more and more likely after the reveal of mermaids, is that there are sprites who watch over the school due to a long-standing agreement between them and the first board of the school. A secret society was set up to make sure the human side of the bargain has continued to be met over the years, while the sprite would watch over the school at night, the only ones able to ring the bell because they can fly.”   
“Those sound like very lovely legends for a school,” said Peggy.   
“Did anything wrong happen last night?” The other three glanced at Arden in surprise.   
“Uh, no, not that I know of. Why?” said Tom. Arden revealed what she had just overheard. Tom’s eyes widened. “What? Really?”   
Arden shrugged. “That’s what I heard.”   
“That’s odd, that’s really really odd,” he said.”You said the name of the girl who heard it was Sarah?”   
Arden nodded, “Yes.” She gave as detailed of a description as she could of the girls, especially Sarah.   
“Thank you, I had better talk to them about this. Excuse me.”   
“Oh Tom!” Tom paused and looked at Arden quizzically. “Do you know how long the pool is going to be closed?”   
Tom shrugged. “Sorry, no clue, I’m not in charge of that. All I know is that the pipes were rusting and Doc Tillie wanted to replace them all. But if you are looking for a pool to swim in, check out Pixie’s Pub and Pool, there’s a party going on over there every night this week.”   
“Tom!”   
Tom grinned at Arden and Peggy. “Hope to see you there! Thanks again, Arden!”   
“Uh, you’re welcome!” said Arden as Tom dashed off.   
Trudy turned to the two with a soft growl. “Oh you just had to ruin everything!”   
“Oh but it’s only the beginning of the school year, darling,” said Peggy. “I think you’ll have plenty of time.” Trudy huffed and walked away.   
“I wonder if he’s even told her no,” muttered Arden.   
Peggy chuckled. “I don’t think he has, poor thing, but he really should, though I really doubt that will do much good. She seems perfectly determined to date him, and he seems perfectly determined not to.” She turned to Arden with a smile. “And he’s such a sweet guy, I think we should do what we can to help him.”   
Arden bobbed her head. “I agree, I think we should. Though I think we’ve done enough for today . . . I hope.”   
Peggy chuckled. “I hope so too. It was the main reason why I asked him about the legends in the first place. He seemed quite thrilled for the distraction.” She smiled at Arden. “And I am certainly glad to have met you, you seem like a lovely woman.”   
“Oh, um, thank you! And you, you look like you’re already a movie star!”   
“Oh, thank you, but I’m aiming for the theater, not the movies.”   
“Oh, well, you still look like you’d fit in quite well.”   
Peggy chuckled. “Thank you.” A chime echoed throughout the campus, startling them. Peggy glanced at her watch. “Oh my goodness, is it already eight? My roommates and I are planning on meeting with some of the other acting majors and head into Morrisville for some shopping.” She turned to Arden and held out her hand. “It really was nice to meet you. Maybe I’ll see you at one of the parties later this week?”   
Arden shook her hand, smiling. “Quite possibly, once I tell my friends about it, I’m sure we’ll be going every night.”   
Peggy smiled. “Wonderful! Then I’ll see you around! Bye!”   
“Bye! It was nice to meet you too!” called out Arden. Peggy waved to her as she dashed away. Arden let out a breath, what a morning. She turned and glanced at the bell tower, and paused. Was it just her imagination, or had the rope been swaying? The breeze blew a strand of hair into her face. She let out a breath. It was just the wind. But if Sarah was right and the bell was rung last night, then, who rang it? But if not who, then what?


End file.
